The Seibu Lions of Japan’s Nippon Skilled Baseball introduced that they’ve signed infielder Tyler Nevin to a two-year extension starting in 2026. Wage figures weren’t included. “I’d like to precise my honest gratitude to my teammates, workers, and followers who’ve trusted me and supported me for the reason that day I arrived in Japan,” Nevin mentioned in a Japanese assertion relayed by the group, per Google Translate. “I’ll attempt to make the remainder of the season even higher and deal with the sport in entrance of me. I can’t look ahead to the subsequent two years. Superior!”
Nevin, 28, signed with the Lions in January. His Japanese profession has gotten out to a stable begin by his first 68 video games. His .269/.330/.379 batting line might not be overwhelming in a vacuum however really interprets to a 120 wRC+ in NPB this yr. Evidently the membership has been happy sufficient with that efficiency to lock him up.
Contemplating the best way Nevin’s profession went earlier than this yr, it’s comprehensible that he would comply with be locked up. Broadly talking, he had all the time hit within the minors however failed to take action within the majors. From 2022 to 2024, he stepped to the plate 639 instances on the Triple-A degree. He hit 26 residence runs and drew walks at a ten.2% clip whereas solely putting out 17.5% of the time. He had a mixed batting line of .313/.391/.536 and a 137 wRC+.
That minor league efficiency acquired him a number of main league appears from the Orioles, Tigers and Athletics, however he wasn’t capable of do a lot with these possibilities. He acquired 591 large league plate appearances over the previous few years with a .204/.299/.315 line and 81 wRC+. He exhausted his last possibility yr in 2023, which put him right into a fringe roster standing. He spent 2024 bouncing on and off the Athletics’ roster, clearing waivers a number of instances all year long. Discovering common taking part in time within the large leagues would have been tough going ahead.
Fairly than spend one other yr grinding by the roster bubble life-style, he accepted an opportunity to go abroad and maybe discover some stability. Provided that he’s having a good yr, he may have tried to parlay that right into a return to North America in 2026. However there would have been no assure of that understanding, so it’s straightforward to see the logic in him sticking with the Lions for one more few years.
Although the wage figures haven’t been reported for this deal, North American gamers getting common work in Japan usually receives a commission within the neighborhood of $1MM yearly. That’s greater than gamers within the minors in North America get and much more than pre-arbitration main leaguers. No matter his wage is, Nevin will get a bit of money and a few job safety for his age-29 and age-30 seasons. If he can take advantage of that common position, he may maybe attempt to return to affiliated ball a number of years from now or safe himself one other deal to proceed taking part in in Asia.
Picture courtesy of Darren Yamashita, Imagn Photos
